Is Local Meat Sustainable?: Research Nutshell
A report from the U. S. Department of Agriculture’s Economic Research Service evaluated the availability of local slaughter facilities, which accommodate the growing but still relatively small demand for locally sourced meat products. That demand is fueled in part by concern about animal welfare in large-scale factory-type settings, but such systems might not be viable solutions.
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Study Summary:
The study looked at the number and types of slaughter facilities available in the United States, especially within the context of where the majority of animals raised and killed for food are located. It found that although demand for “local meat” has doubled over the last decade, there is something of a Catch-22 with producers and processors: local farmers can’t raise more animals without the means to slaughter them, and slaughter facilities don’t have enough year-round business to stay profitable, relative to large-scale operations. In sum, it states, “The small-scale characteristics of operations that produce, slaughter, and process locally sourced meat and livestock products inhibit the producer’s and processor’s ability to benefit from economies of scale.”
Policy Implications:
The many good reasons for buying locally sourced foods include resource conservation and the benefit for local economies. Local slaughterhouses and backyard chicken coops may be more environmentally sustainable than concentrated animal operations, but they are not necessarily more humane. Local laws and government agencies may be ill-equipped to enforce any standards at slaughterhouses. So in some areas, an already dismal situation for farmed animals could become even worse.
If concern for the environment is the primary reason consumers favor local meat, then not eating animals at all is the obvious choice for minimizing resource use and waste production. Society must examine its psychological addiction to animal flesh and the false rationalization that it is more sustainable if it’s local. Eating animals is inherently unsustainable.
This reality appears to be lost on policymakers rallying against Meatless Mondays and even on environmental groups, most of which seem to lack the courage to ask their constituents to give up meat. If we are to create a truly sustainable and humane food system, we must find ways to reduce and eventually eliminate our use of animal products. Being a locavore isn’t enough.
Read the USDA Report here.
This research nutshell comes from Che Green at Faunalytics and Jill Howard Church at the Animals and Society Institute (ASI), an organization dedicated to policy-oriented research and human-animal studies. Faunalytics and ASI already collaborate on multiple projects and we will work together to identify important studies for future research nutshells.
See the original post on the ASI website.